Intel Arc Alchemist launch postponed to Q2, 2022 due to driver issues

Graphics card-starved gamers have been salivating at the prospect of Intel's new Arc Alchemist graphics cards launching in Q1, 2022. However, YouTuber Moore's Law is Dead has some bad news in store. It seems that the graphics cards' launch has been pushed back to Q2, 2022, with a few paper launches due earlier.

Intel could reveal more information about the Arc lineup at PAX East starting on 21 April. Some graphics cards are scheduled to be raffled off over there as well. Additionally, the entry-level Intel Arc SKUs will reportedly cost a lot lesser than similarly-specced Nvidia and AMD counterparts. The leaker adds that Intel could announce some entry-level laptop parts in April. AIBs are expected to get samples of the desktop cards in March/April, so we can expect some leaks to pop up then.

It seems that the Intel Arc launch was delayed due to driver issues, which has been the bane of Intel's existence for a long time. Over the last few years, OEMs have usually unveiled their best offerings first, with the cheaper products following suit later. Intel seems to have flipped that on its head by first launching the low-end Intel Arc graphics cards. The top-of-the-line offering with 512 EUs and 16 GB of VRAM, the GeForce RTX 3070 rival, could be announced after April.

While Moore's Law is Dead has a stellar reputation for hardware leaks, the information should still be treated with scepticism. There is a non-zero possibility of the Intel Arc launch being pushed even further due to unforeseen issues. It is clear that Intel wanted to drop the Arc alongside the GeForce RTX 3070 Ti 16 GB and Radeon RX 6950 XT to steal some of their thunder, and that could still happen.